mastering in DP????

[robebones]

Yo,

I was wondering if there was any way, other than opening a mastering template, to run a mastering program in DP???

I am just getting to mastering my songs, and would like to use DP without purchasing a 3rd party prog.

Any suggestions?

[Splinter]

Yo,

I was wondering if there was any way, other than opening a mastering template, to run a mastering program in DP???

I am just getting to mastering my songs, and would like to use DP without purchasing a 3rd party prog.

Any suggestions?

I master in DP all of the time. You don't get any PPQ code editing, but you can get great, even-sounding, masters with no fuss.

[robebones]

Yo,

I was wondering if there was any way, other than opening a mastering template, to run a mastering program in DP???

I am just getting to mastering my songs, and would like to use DP without purchasing a 3rd party prog.

Any suggestions?

I master in DP all of the time. You don't get any PPQ code editing, but you can get great, even-sounding, masters with no fuss.

do you usually just use a limiter and possibly an EQ on it? i'm really not sure what plugs to use on it?

[Shooshie]

Argghhh... I'm not sure how to answer you. One side of me says "get a mastering engineer. You don't know enough about mastering to do your work justice." The other side says "answer the poor guy's question. No need to lecture him." So, I'm going with the 2nd.

I'd look toward some things like the Waves Mastering Suite. It contains the L2 Limiter, which is great, though I prefer the L3; and it has a set of EQ's that work like this: there's a low-end EQ specially for low range, and a general EQ for the high, and they all work without phase issues. They're called Linear Phase EQ. Then there's the Linear Phase Multi-Band processor, which is as amazing as it is hard to learn. You can get great results with this, and retain your phase perfectly, but you've got to spend time learning how the controls work, and what they can (and can't) do.

There are lots of other mastering tools, but they're much more involved, and probably more expensive. One great tool comes with Logic Studio, and is called "WaveBurner." It's for burning to CD or DVD, and it allows you to do mastering on each individual track. Fantastic program, and is worth more than the $500 for Logic Studio, though I must warn you that it does not include mastering plugins; you have to provide those yourself.

Real mastering is an art in itself, and people who do it spend a lot of money getting set up with the tools to work with. It's not something that comes with a plugin.

Shooshie

[kassonica]

I agree about Wave burner.

Awesome program and worth the $500 alone.

[Splinter]

I agree about Wave burner.

Awesome program and worth the $500 alone.

Yup. Very impressive piece of kit. I just need to learn to use it, now

[Splinter]

do you usually just use a limiter and possibly an EQ on it? i'm really not sure what plugs to use on it?

I balance levels between tracks, EQ individual tracks, compress the project, and limit. I use Elemental Audio Systems Firium phase linear EQ (now owned by Roger Nichols Digital, but I don't know what bastardized name he's given it) and Waves RenComp and L3.

Works for me and my clients, but I'm no mastering engineer.

[pcm]

Mastering is no different than songwriting or playing a musical instrument. It's about skill. Gear is second, and a very distant second at that. DP is just a set of tools. All carpenters use the same tools. Any guitar player can walk into a store and buy any strat off the shelf. All songwriters have the same pens and pencils. Skill level is what determines the outcome.

[daniel.sneed]

I agree mostly with you PCM, skill is always the real first tool.

But, about mastering, I consider the listening environment to be the real second tool.

IMHO, even with great skill, there won't be any serious mastering possible without a deeply "tuned" room fitted with a great monitoring speaker system.

For shure, whatever processing gears involved are far behind from these two.

[Splinter]

I'm with you, Daniel. $50,000 monitors, a $250,000 room, a $30,000 hand-built EQ, and $12,000 stereo converters are part of what you pay for to set your master apart. At that level, skill is a given. However, taste is something entirely different.

[Phil O]

Argghhh... I'm not sure how to answer you. One side of me says "get a mastering engineer. You don't know enough about mastering to do your work justice." The other side says "answer the poor guy's question. No need to lecture him." So, I'm going with the 2nd.

Shooshie, this seems to be a common dilemma. I always advise my clients to take my mixes to a mastering engineer and in fact suggest who they should take it to, but many times it's not within their budget. I can't hand them an un-mastered product, so I master it myself. There are times when it just makes sense to do it yourself. And the other thing is, every mastering engineer out there has one thing in common. They were all inexperienced at one time. You gotta start somewhere. So I fully understand why you would be torn on this subject, as am I.

Robebones, as far as the actual mastering is concerned, keep in mind that mastering is not a specific process. A good mastering engineer will listen first, and then decide what processes are needed. His approach may be very different from project to project depending on what the mixes need as well as the wishes of his clients. The equipment and techniques he/she uses are just the tools. Mastering is really about making it all sound right in a cohesive finished product. But as others have said, you have to know that what you're hearing is accurate, and that requires a nearly perfect listening environment.

Phil

[midilance]

FWIW there is a very interesting article in the new January 2008 issue of EQ magazine called, "The Ultimate Mastering for Musicians Primer." It brought up a lot of good points.

[robebones]

Thanks for all the input on the topic. I'm actually mixing everything currently in my bedroom with a 2.1 system (krk 6, krk 10). I have minimal acoustic treatment in the room as well.

I'm going to look into the Waves prog and others that were recommended. I have only been personally mixing songs for about 8 months now, but have recorded in and out of studios and have been involved in the process for about 8 or 9 years now.

I have seen a couple engineers master, some it took 2 hours, others it took a whole day. I really agree that it comes down to your own ear and how everything works together in itself. Thanks again.